Iraq or the Economy?

What is the importance of the war in Iraq relative to other current issues? This is a question I am often asked, especially as Americans continue to become increasingly aware that something is very wrong with the economy. The difficulty with the way the question is often asked relates to the perception that we are somehow able to divide such issues, or to isolate the cost of war into arbitrarily defined areas such as national security or international relations. War is an all-encompassing governmental activity. The impact of war on our ability to defend ourselves from future attack, and upon America’s standing in the world, is only a mere fraction of the total overall effect that war has on our nation and the policies of its government.

The cost of this particular war is enormous, and therefore it is of great importance. There is no single issue that is more important at this particular time. The war has, of course, made us less safe as a nation and damaged our credibility with allies and hostile nations alike. Moreover, years of growing deficits have been spurred on by the high price tag of war, and the decision to pay that price primarily by supplemental spending rather than traditional “on-budget” accounting.

War takes what would otherwise be productive economic capacity and transfers both that capacity, and the wealth it would generate in normal, peaceful, times into far less economically viable activities. It also impacts budget priorities in ways that are detrimental to our nation. I have often pointed to the fact that we are building bridges in Iraq while they are collapsing in the United States.

All war, but most particularly war funded by monetary inflation, bleeds a country in multiple ways. Obviously, many of the young people who are in the military literally give their blood, and sometimes their lives, fighting in wars of this type. Meanwhile, those who do not fight the war, but fund it, are forced to pay both the immediate costs, as well as seeing their long term purchasing power erode, as the twin pillars of debt and inflation are foisted upon the backs of current taxpayers and future generations. Neither conspiracy nor coincidence explains steep increases in the price of gas as the war drags on. No, this is simply a reality of the inflationary policies that, among other things, make this war possible.

As people are continually asked to choose whether our nation’s teetering economy or the failed foreign policy of the past several decades is most important as we look forward, it is well for those of us who understand that these two issues are closely linked, to continue to explain this fact to our fellow citizens. To fix the problem requires a proper diagnosis.

Tatiana,
Our nation’s history abounds with ignored hindsight wisdoms regarding our apparently failing economy even during times of real and great prosperity.

Article 1; section 8; paragraphs 4-6 of the U.S.Constitution mandates that the Senate and House of Representatives are the sole regulators of standard weights, coin and currency.

Recognizing that it is impossible for a corporation of any size to pay a tax, since all costs are passed on to the consumer and any imaginary tax payments from a business are hidden taxes the people cannot require government agencies to account for, Article ; section 9; paragraps 4,7 require that taxes can only be taken directly from citizens, in accordance with the census numeration (equal tax means equal voice for the poor to point fingers), and Congress is required to publicize “..a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money….”

That requirement for taxation by capitation and numeration based upon and accountable to the census also removes the legal posibility of withdrawing from the national treasury an excess of what can be collected from the existing population. At the signing of the Constitution our forefathers knew that an overdraft of the national treasury would falsify a debt upon the unborn who are not members of the taxable community. An impossible debt we have already bequeathed upon our prosterity, who are already acknowledged to possess the precedent 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms when it becomes necessary to remove our self-centered bull dung.

Shortly after the Constitution policies and standards were established for all citizens to know, and the nation was relatively free from foreign threats, poliicians who understand the divide and conquer rule began partitioning Congress and the nation into adversary party constituencies, invented a Federal Reserve Banking system of private profiteering banks to take away Congress’ accountability to the people, and approved the Federal Reserve’s back door authority to lend the National Treasury more money than could be collected from the existing population.

Thomas Jefferson warned Congress and America what that violation of Congressional responsibilty would do to the established order we owe to the future generations, but poliicians then as now payed more attention to the power gained by dividing gimmee-gimmee constituent corporations and beggers in a big every-man-for-himself.

Thus, when Thomas Jefferson became President of the United States, with the authority to make international treaties whose legal agreements are superior to the laws of the United States (Article 6; paragraph 2), he decided to use Congress’ corruption in a beneficial way that might also wake them up to the ineviable corruption it might and has brought upon us. Jefferson withdrew a couple more dollars than were in the National Treasury, made the Louisiana Purchase from France and forced the damned fools in Congress to borrow from the private Federal Reserve Bank…with interest.

Today the gimmee-gimmee Corporate constituencies against each other court our Congressional sluts of both sexes for big money welfare advantages. Our individual citizens are divided into aristocratic and impoverished constituencies, racial and sexual constituencies, and, in the name of the bull dung doG of personal abundance (Matt 12:25-27), beg for the very social freebee services that destroyed the faith developing households containing two or three generations of trust and economic efficiency.

Eight-years of the Slick Willy Admistration followed by eight-years of the Boy George Adminstration is justification enough for anyone to curse the son of a single parent head of household who casts a ballot for either the Slick Willy Party or the Boy George Party this November.

Jim Hitch

You’ve mentioned that we should get rid of the Federal Reserve. Based on what I know, as of today, I am in total agreement. How do we go about getting rid of the Fed and what ramifications should we address beforehand? Thank you and you’ve got my vote. Bring back the Constitution!

Ann Raabe

I believe that Ron Paul’s support of Constitutional money is the best thing we can do for our country right now. Until it is addressed we have to stop Congress from passing more spending bills with an empty checkbook. We need to understand our monetary system more than anything right now. If we understand it, then we will most likely say “no more” to war in Iraq.

I wonder if I am one of the few who understand that when we went to Iraq we seized not only their assets (after the looting) but also allowed the Federal Reserve Banks to issue money against their non existant currency. You see, we took their money out of circulation, burned it and issued new money in order to pay American owned private corporation’s War Claims.Blackwater is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to government spending. This money and the businesses seized in Iraq are now vested in private corporations. Study The Trading With the Enemy Act and see how this was done in World War I and World War II, as well as Vietnam. Of course this money is not real money either, but it becomes real when our gas and grocery prices go up and we can’t pay our bills.
Please Mr. Paul, try to address this to the public as well. You have my support in all that you say and try to do.

Although it bothers me that many people see you as our nation’s hope, I still ignore their argument and pay attention to your continued evaluation that my Constitution of the United States is our nation’s only hope.

Your military, public and professional life seems to remain consistant toward that end,and even though I know that one man cannot snap a finger and remove the welfare programs both citizens and corporations are trained to rely upon, I know that as citizens grow in understanding that the Consttution is ours and intended only to assure no one gets an advantage over anyone else by laws then they will come to recognize that we are responsible to make certain that NO PUBLIC SERVANT WILL EVER BE CALLED A LEADER AGAIN.

The state of our country is dismal, but there is hope in all situations. Please continue your campaign though you are no longer on the Republican ticket. No matter what options are on my ballot come November, I will be voting for you, because I believe that you are this country’s hope. I live in Galveston, Texas and you have many supporters here. We love your message. Keep up the fight. We are behind you…

11:42 am: "Just an addition on today’s tax-bill questions as the Senate tries to work out a passable solution: Someone should ask the Senators if they know the definition of..." - siftthru

11:38 am: "Thank you for the discussion on cash. I understand Russia and China are working on forming another international reserve currency — something other than the US..." - siftthru

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